The imagery of bulls and steers pervades Hemmingway's novel, The Sun Also Rises. Bullfighting is a major plot concern and is very important to the characters. The narrator physically resembles a steer due to the nature of his injury. Mike identifies Cohn as a steer in conversation because of his inability to control Brett sexually. Brett falls for a bullfighter, who is a symbol of virility and passion. However, there is a deeper level to the bull-steer dichotomy than their respective sexual traits. The imagery associated with bulls and steers is more illustrative than their possession or lack of testicles. In their roles and in the images associated with them, bulls are glorious, exciting and dangerous. Steers are humble, impotent and safe. Hemmingway's treatment of these associations favors an ethic of weakness prevailing over strength. Despite the seeming advantages to being a bull and the explicit statements in their favor, steers are the true heroes in Hemmingway's novel.

The imagery associated with bulls and steers is confusing, since it is clearly supportive of bulls over steers. Bulls are associated with passion. Those who identify with bulls through their enthusiasm for bullfighting are called "aficionado" from the Spanish word for passion (131). Those who lack aficion are valueless while a true aficionado is a "buen hombre" (132). The bulls are "beautiful," muscular, aggressive and "dangerous" (139, 141). Because of their physical prowess and their sexual potency, bulls are capable of ascending to the heights of glory. They arouse passions in the crowds who gather to watch them run and fight. In sharp contrast, the steers are weak and emasculate. ...

... middle of paper ...

...dencies. Without the bulls, the steers would stagnate. Without the steers, the bulls would self-destruct. The novel is a story about passion and how it must be pacified by the pedantic voice of normalcy. The way of the steer rescues the way of the bull from its conclusion in self-annihilation. In turn, the aficion of the bulls gives meaning and purpose to the life of the steer.

Click the button above to view the complete essay, speech, term paper, or research paper

Need Writing Help?

Jake Barnes as Hemingway Code Hero in The Sun Also Rises Essays
- Jake Barnes as Hemingway Code Hero in The Sun Also Rises The portrayal of heroism is an essential aspect of literature, and every writer delineates his heroes through their ability to triumph over adversity. Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) consistently defined and distinguished his heroes through an echoing set of characteristics that form a characteristic "Hemingway Code Hero." A Code Hero is one that distinguishes himself by his ability to demonstrate grace under pressure, to adhere to a strong set of personal values and, most importantly, to live life to the fullest.... [tags: Hemingway Sun Also Rises Essays]:: 4 Works Cited

The True Hero of the Lost Generation Essay examples
- Society tells people that if they go to war and fight for their country, they are heroes. Every generation has war heroes that sacrificed a great deal. Many heroes die fighting for their nation while other heroes survive and have to live with post-traumatic symptoms either stimulated by physical and/or mental trauma. Ernest Hemingway, an expatriate of World War I, recognizes the effects of the war has on soldiers and effectively captivates the heroes’ distress, alienation, and detachment in The Sun Also Rises through his writing style.... [tags: Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises]

Essay on The Hero in A Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway
- Ernest Hemingway defined a hero as, “A man who lives correctly, following the ideals of honor, courage and endurance in a world that is sometimes chaotic, often stressful, and always painful.” It is blatantly apparent that Henry, the protagonist of A Farewell to Arms, did not exemplify any of these traits at all in the beginning of the novel. However, as the book progressed, Henry gradually learned how to be a “Hemingway Hero”, and he eventually progressed to the point where he completely embodied all that is expected of such.... [tags: Hemingway Hero]:: 1 Works Cited

Essay on Use of Heroes in A Farewell of Arms by Ernest Hemingway
- Use of Heroes in A Farewell of Arms by Ernest Hemingway Ernest Hemingway has the tendency to use his heroes in some unheroic ways. At first the hero may seem obvious, but later on it is discovered that the true hero is not who it seems to be. In A Farewell to Arms Hemingway uses the true hero to guide the main character into becoming a hero, but fails miserably. Hemingway characterizes his heroes as people with strength, courage, and bravery, but even heroes have their flaws. For example, Frederic Henry, the protagonist of A Farewell to Arms, survives an artillery bombardment that kills one of his own men and badly injures him.... [tags: Papers]

A Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway Essay
- Ernest Hemingway defined a hero as, “A man who lives correctly, following the ideals of honor, courage and endurance in a world that is sometimes chaotic, often stressful, and always painful.” It is blatantly apparent that Henry, the protagonist of A Farewell to Arms, did not exemplify any of these traits at all in the beginning of the novel. However, as the book progressed, Henry gradually learned how to be a “Hemingway Hero”, and he eventually progressed to the point where he completely embodied all that is expected of such.... [tags: Attributes of a Hero]

Hemingway and Fitzgerald Essay
- Hemingway and Fitzgerald Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, the parties of one of the most famously infamous relationships in literary history met for the first time in late April 1925 at The Dingo Bar, a Paris hangout for the bohemian set. In his novel A Moveable Feast (published posthumously) Hemingway describes his first impressions of Fitzgerald: “The first time I ever met Scott Fitzgerald a very strange thing happened. Many strange things happened with Scott, but this one I was never able to forget.... [tags: Friendships Writers Authors Essays]:: 5 Works Cited

Existentialism in Soldier’s Home by Ernest Hemingway Essay
- ... “In ‘Soldier’s Home,’ Hemingway uses conflict to show how society demands conformity and the unfair struggles of those who do not fit the mold” (Comtois). Harold Krebs did not fit the mold, so he struggled to keep the attention of others. In striving to please the people around him, Krebs fed into the ways of society, making him a conformist. In order to become himself again, Krebs needed to separate himself and forget what others wanted him to say and do. Krebs needed to be selfish so he could do what was right for him.... [tags: harold krebs, soldier]

Essay on Ernest Hemingway and Masculinity
- Ernest Hemingway and Masculinity Ernest Hemingway, viewed as an American hero of his time, wrote novels that enrich the minds' of his readers, creating a lasting image that goes far beyond the actual content of the story. But while reading Hemingway, I learned that his style was far from complex. Through pre-meditated sentence structure, he creates a rhythm that parallels the action in the story. He wants the sentences themselves to be easy to understand, so the reader can use more energy focusing on the symbolism Hemingway's stories create.... [tags: Biography Biographies Essays]:: 3 Works Cited

The Enduring Hero in the Works of Ernest Hemingway Essay
- The Enduring Hero in the Works of Ernest Hemingway In his vast collection of masterpieces, Ernest Hemingway uses his own characteristics to set a moral code for his various heroes. This sportsman like code is based on the admiration of the physical virtues of courage and endurance. While not necessary for sustaining society, the code conforms the characters to one set of characteristics (McCaffery 237). One key element of this code is stoic endurance in the face of calamity. Hemingway's code heroes posses a grin-and-bear it attitude even in the most dire of tragedies and bounce back seemingly unaffected (McCaffery 237).... [tags: Biography Biographies Essays]:: 8 Works Cited

Plight of the Code Hero in the Works of Ernest Hemingway Essay
- The Plight of the Code Hero in the Works of Ernest Hemingway In his novels Ernest Hemingway suggests a code of behavior for his characters to follow: one that demands courage in difficult situations, strength in the face of adversity, and grace under pressure. Termed the "code hero," this character is driven by the principal ideals of honor, courage, and endurance in a life of stress, misfortune, and pain. Despite the hero's fight against life in this violent and disorderly world, he is rarely the victor. The code that the hero follows demands that he act honorably in this uphill battle and find fulfillment by becoming a man and proving his worth. Hemingway himself lived his... [tags: Biography Biographies Essays]:: 9 Works Cited